Hidden among the important Oscar contenders flooding our screens, and easily mistaken for such worthy, serious and often lengthy fare, Silver Linings Playbook is actually something new, and something very very enjoyable. It is the perfect 21st century rom-com.

Bradley Cooper is Pat, a manic depressive who convinces his mother, Jacki Weaver to spring him from the hospital and for the first half hour this appears to be the spiral into mental misery we expect from any good Oscar-bait.

The perfect 21st century rom-com.

Then Pat meets Tiffany, played by the outstanding Jennifer Lawrence, and the film slowly but surely soars as it grows into a black rom-com - or possibly a rom-black-com - that is sure to entertain and delight the blackest dog.

David O. Russell doing a rom-com is like a footballer learning to dance ... Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper in Silver Linings Playbook.

The key to the film is the ensemble, where nearly every character has a twist and they are without exception all a bit touched. Robert de Niro in particular is outstanding as the obsessive compulsive father, a return to form for the master actor.

So, whether you like award winning craft or escapist rom-coms, or in fact basically if you just love a good film, then Silver linings Playbook will shine for you.